Monday, May 18, 2009

Bread #2 Artos, Christopsomos Version

Greetings! Last night, I baked the Christopsomos, and it was shockingly wonderful! I normally would never choose this bread to make because of the spices, the add-ins, and especially the almond extract. For the most part, I stick to whole grain, crusty boules and baguettes. I'm so glad that I was brave and tried this. It is unbelievably fantastic! And yes, I even used the almond extract.

I started with the poolish at about 1:00 in the afternoon. By the time I got around to the actual bread, it was around 7:00, and the poolish was bubbling away. It had a great texture, too. I had a friend over, so he read the directions aloud to me from the couch. It was perfect; I didn't have to keep checking the recipe. And a special shout out to that friend, Russell, who came up with the name for this blog. Thanks, Russell.

Anyway, I used a combination (approximately half and half) King Arthur bread flour and white whole wheat flour. That proved to be a great combination. It made a silky dough, which allowed me to knead the raisins, dried cranberries and cherries, and the walnuts in after the dough had its initial kneading. I've never had success with this method before, so that is a testament to the dough.

I did not slash the top, but I did mist it three times at five minute intervals, and it rose straight up without spreading out flat, like so many of my breads do. I was incredulous! I kept strolling past the oven door peeking through the glass to see if it had fallen; it didn't. It was a beautiful sight to behold.

After filling my entire house with fragrant, spicy aromas, the bread finally came out of the oven around midnight. I photographed it, let it rest long enough for me to fold a load of clothes, and then I just couldn't stand it another minute. I sliced off the end, spread it with a little butter and enjoyed it with a cup of tea. It was amazing! Perfect texture, amazing flavors (the orange peel, which I zested, using a Microplane, rather than mincing really added a depth) and crunch from the walnuts all contributed to make quite possibly the perfect loaf in that genre of breads.

7 comments:

Your #2 challenge turned out perfect. I also loved this recipe and I was surprised with the seasonings how it tasted. Love it.Your doing great.I'll be starting my bagels hopefully tomorrow. :)Susie in northern NY

About Me

The picture above was taken at Powell's Books in Portland, Oregon on my summer Odyssey. I have been baking bread for 36 years and am still in awe when I take a fresh loaf from the oven.
In my day job, I teach 7th graders how to fall in love once again with words and language in the form of reading & writing. We also study medieval world history by reading about it and then doing something with it like acting it out, or writing about it, etc.; culminating the school year with a schoolwide Renaissance Faire, of which I am the reigning Queen.
I have two grown children, Cate and Matthew, of whom I am extremely proud. They are spectacular human beings, as gorgeous on the inside as they are externally.
I am an avid cookbook collector with a huge collection.
I am delighted to be a part of this challenge. I have made breads that I have never heard of. I have made breads that I thought were out of my league, and yet they have turned out to be fabulous. This has pushed me to be adventurous in my bread baking. I have learned so much, and I look forward to expanding that knowledge each week with others in this challenge, my partners in yeast.